This invention relates generally to rapid manufacturing and, in particular, to the use of focusing optics to control road width and other factors in such processes.
Fabrication of three-dimensional metallic components via layer-by-layer laser cladding was first reported in 1978 by Breinan and Kear. In 1982, U.S. Pat. No. 4,323,756 issued to Brown et al., which describes a method for the production of bulk rapidly solidified metallic articles of near-net shape, finding particular utility in the fabrication of certain gas turbine engine components including discs and knife-edge air seals. According to the disclosure, multiple thin layers of feedstock are deposited using an energy beam to fuse each layer onto a substrate. The energy source employed may be a laser or an electron beam. The feedstock employed in the practice of the invention may be either a wire or powder material, and this feedstock is applied to the substrate in such a fashion that it passes through the laser beam and fuses to the melted portion of the substrate.
Different technologies have since evolved to improve such processes. U.S. Pat. No. 4,724,299 is directed to a laser spray nozzle assembly including a nozzle body with a housing that forms an annular passage. The housing has an opening coaxial with a passageway, permitting a laser beam to pass therethrough. A cladding powder supply system is operably associated with the passage for supplying cladding powder thereto so that the powder exits the opening coaxial with the beam.
Various groups are now working world-wide on different types of layered manufacturing techniques for fabrication of near-net-shape metallic components. In particular, nozzles of the type described above have been integrated with multi-axis, commercially available CNC machines for the fabrication of 3-dimensional components. U.S. Pat. No. 5,837,960 resides in a method and apparatus for forming articles from materials in particulate form. The materials are melted by a laser beam and deposited at points along a tool path to form an article of the desired shape and dimensions. Preferably the tool path and other parameters of the deposition process are established using computer-aided design and manufacturing techniques. A controller comprised of a digital computer directs movement of a deposition zone along the tool path and provides control signals to adjust apparatus functions, such as the speed at which a deposition head which delivers the laser beam and powder to the deposition zone moves along the tool path.
Existing techniques, however, are based on open-loop processes requiring either considerable amount of periodic machining or final machining for close dimensional tolerances. Continuous corrective measures during the manufacturing process are necessary to fabricate net shape functional parts with close tolerances and acceptable residual stress. One exception is the system described in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,564. This patent, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference, describes a laser-aided, computer-controlled direct-metal deposition, or DMD(trademark), system wherein layers of material are applied to a substrate so as to fabricate an object or to provide a cladding layer.
In contrast to previous methodologies, closed-loop DMD system is equipped with feedback monitoring to control the dimensions and overall geometry of the fabricated article in accordance with a computer-aided design (CAD) description. The deposition tool path is generated by a computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) system for CNC machining, with post-processing software for deposition, instead of software for removal as in conventional CNC machining.
Even with closed-loop DMD, however, corrective measures are often needed in four major areas. These are: dimension (height and width), composition, temperature and residual stress. The later two are primary cause of distortion and cracking. Continuous monitoring and control of height and width ensure close dimensional tolerance of the fabricated component.
The height of the deposit is controlled by an optical feedback loop as described in the ""564 patent referenced above. Projecting the image on a linear array detector and continuously counting the illuminated pixels can be used to monitor width of the deposit. The same result may also be obtained by monitoring the video signal used for the visual inspection of the process. Methods to control residual stress are disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 60/142,126, filed Jul. 2, 1999, also incorporated herein in its entirety.
In order to maintain close tolerance, deposition rate is somewhat limited to deposit thickness per pass. Although the present deposition rate for closed loop direct metal deposition (DMD) is commercially viable, any increase in the deposition rate and simultaneous deposition of multiple material will significantly reduce the lead-time and increase the design flexibility. There remains an outstanding need therefore to increase the deposit road-width while maintaining the dimensional tolerance to enhance coverage area and volume.
In broad and general terms, this invention provides adjustable focusing optics for use in laser-assisted direct metal deposition (DMD) processes to match beam geometry to deposition feature size and/or characteristics. The focusing optics and method may be adapted for variable deposition road width under closed-loop feedback, so that complicated features may be fabricated with close tolerance, and/or stress and microstructure control to improve lead-time and design flexibility. The preferred embodiments use adaptive mirror arrangements and beam steering for continuously variable deposition width and geometry control. Conceptually, an infinite number of mirror arrangements can be made to adapt to a particular deposit shape.